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Suns yet to make Ablett call in AFL

Roger Vaughan and Ed Jackson

Injured Gold Coast captain Gary Ablett will meet with specialists in Melbourne before a call is made on when he returns to the AFL.

The Suns hope they can reveal the final verdict on Ablett's dislocated shoulder by Tuesday afternoon.

Ablett had scans on Monday morning, but Gold Coast want more advice on the injury.

Their football operations manager Marcus Ashcroft confirmed Ablett would meet with respected orthopaedic surgeon Greg Hoy, who specialises in shoulders, among other specialists while in Melbourne.

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Ablett's shoulder dislocation in the third term of the win over Collingwood on Saturday night was one of the biggest moments of the season.

Ashcroft would not speculate on the best - and worst-case scenarios, but confirmed the scans showed no bone damage.

"(That) is a positive, but we still need to get further advice from specialists down in Victoria," Ashcroft said.

"We obviously want it to be sooner rather than later, him coming back.

"But until we get all the facts ... we know with Gary, it's topical and everyone wants to know what's going on, as we do.

"So we want to take our time and make sure once we get all the facts, hopefully by tomorrow afternoon, we can give answers to those questions."

Ablett's availability through the rest of this season is massive for the Suns, who are on track for their first finals appearance, and for Brownlow Medal betting.

Before Ablett's left shoulder popped out in a crunching tackle from opponent Brent Macaffer, he was the clear favourite to win his third Brownlow.

Nervous bookmakers suspended Brownlow betting and when their markets resumed on Monday, Ablett's odds had gone out from around $1.60 to $3.00.

The consensus is that at best, Ablett will miss three to four weeks.

No player has missed more than four games in a season and won the Brownlow.

But there is undoubtedly a risk that if Ablett returns without undergoing surgery, the shoulder could pop out again.

"While we want him back, sooner rather than later, to play some footy and hopefully charge towards a first finals berth, we need to make sure we look at the long-term interests of Gary as well," Ashcroft said.

"It's on the individual first.

"We want to make sure, if it's Gary or anyone else on our list, that the long-term view is looked after first of all.

"If there's no risk to (him) getting back earlier rather than later, then we'll go along that path."